Thursday, January 7, 2016

Was your New Year’s Resolution to Get Fit or Lose Weight?

Did you make a new year’s resolution when you rang in
2016?Was it to get fit or lose
weight?Here are 5 tips to help you keep
your resolution:

1. Find a partner!

Having an accountability partner when trying to make a
lifestyle change is always very helpful!You have a built-in work out partner, as well as someone who you are
accountable to so you cannot make excuses!You can help motivate and encourage each other…maybe even challenge each
other.Knowing that someone is waiting
on you for that way-too-early 6am run or dreaded after work gym session will
help persuade you to show up and not stay in bed or make another excuse.

2. Start small!

No one expects you to walk into the gym on day one and
compete in the CrossFit Games or bench press your body weight.You have to work up to those things.It may not even be a good idea to start with
free weights or the circuit machines at the gym…depending on just how out of
shape you are J.Starting with a bodyweight workout challenge
or even a resistance band workout may help you stick with it instead of giving
up because you are way too sore to continue…or God forbid, have injured
yourself.Do NOT compare yourself to
anyone else!Do NOT try to compete with
anyone else!You must go at your own
pace to get the results you want.

3. Warm up & cool down!

It is never a good idea to start a workout of any kind without a
good warm up.Whether it is a brisk 5-10
minute walk before you start your morning run or dynamic stretching before
Zumba class…a good warm up helps loosen up your muscles, increase your heart
rate and reduce injuries.According to
the American Heart Association, “a good warm-up dilates your blood vessels,
ensuring that your muscles are well supplied with oxygen.It also raises your muscles’ temperature for
optimal flexibility and efficiency.By
slowly raising your heart rate, the warm-up also helps minimize stress on your
heart.Cooling down after a workout is
as important as warming up.After
physical activity, your heart is still beating faster than normal, your body
temperature is higher and your blood vessels are dilated. This means if you
stop too fast, you could pass out or feel sick. A cool-down after physical activity allows a
gradual decrease at the end of the episode.It’s good to stretch when you’re cooling down because your limbs, muscles
and joints are still warm.Stretching
can help reduce the buildup of lactic acid, which can lead to muscles cramping
and stiffness.” (http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/PhysicalActivity/FitnessBasics/Warm-Up-Cool-Down_UCM_430168_Article.jsp#.Vo6JdG9IgaI)

4. Hydrate!

It is important to hydrate in your daily life, but even more so
when you are working out.Your body is made
up of mostly water…and practically every function of your body requires
water.If you do not hydrate properly,
your body will take water from wherever it can get it to run the bodily
functions needed to keep you going.Your
intestines hold quite a bit of water to keep you regular.So when you do not supply your body with new,
clean water, it will take the used, unclean water from your digestive tract to
fuel your body.Does that sound
healthy???Drinking 1oz of water per
pound of body weight per day is the recommended amount of water needed to stay
hydrated.It may be necessary to drink
more if you are burning more energy by working out.A good way to make sure you drink a lot of
water is to carry a water bottle around with you…or if you are really serious
about it, make one of these:

5. Diet…or more accurately…EAT HEALTHY!

The word diet has a stigma attached to it.Diets, in vast majority, DO NOT WORK!!!In order to change the way you eat, you must
change your lifestyle!If your lifestyle
does not change, any weight that was lost will just come back.First, stop eating fast food!That’s a big part of it.Yes, it’s easy, fast and cheap…but that
combination does not always lead to success.You cannot expect to look like a million bucks when you eat from the
dollar menu.I’m not saying that you
must eat only organic fruits and vegetables, but being cognizant of what you
are fueling your body with can help change your opinion on food.There are so many healthy recipes available
online that you will never run out of good choices.Second, if you have a family, include them in
the lifestyle change so that you are not tempted to eat junk with them.If the whole family eats healthy, the whole
family gets healthy.Sugar free
popsicles and Jello are great alternatives to candy, cookies and ice cream when
you get that sweet tooth.A great guideline
to follow is high protein, high vegetable, low calorie, low carbohydrate and
moderate fruit intake.If you can follow
these tips, you should be able to watch the pounds melt away.

If you or someone you know in the Gallatin Valley area is
looking for a chiropractor, please call Dr. Shea Stark with Pro Chiropractic at
406-219-2462 to schedule an appointment in our Belgrade, Manhattan, or Bozeman
office.Dr. Stark is a board certified
chiropractor and the author of this blog post.To learn more about Dr. Stark and the many benefits of chiropractic
care, please visit our website: www.prochiromt.com.